Opinion by Frederik Balfour at Business Week
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If only Musharraf had used some of that $10 billion on improving social services, the country might not be in such a bad way now. Poverty hasn’t improved, illiteracy is shockingly high, especially among young girls, and unless you are an army brat, you can forget about any social safety net. When people have little hope for in this life, it’s a short step to embrace Islamic extremism with its promise of an immediate reward in the next.
I base my observations on a visit I made to Hunza, a remote part of the Pakistan near the Chinese border at the time when the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001. Life for the people there living at an altitude of 7800 feet is plenty harsh, yet thanks to the Aga Khan Foundation, which has pumped money into education, especially for girls for decades, the people have a sense of empowerment and belief in a better future. It is no coincidence that the predominantly Ismaili Shia communities have virtually no extremist Muslim members. If only the sense of hope and optimism could spread to the rest of the country.
Ismailimail 